


Stories of the Second Self: Big Man on the Beat

by John_Steiner



Series: Alter Idem [94]
Category: Police - Fandom, Urban Fantasy - Fandom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-08
Updated: 2020-02-08
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:48:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,206
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22608025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/John_Steiner/pseuds/John_Steiner
Summary: Pedro Hortez had his choice of bright futures; he was an excellent law student and a masterful college football player. However, with Alter Idem his growth into a giant took it all away. Yet, his talents weren't to go to waste in the Cincinnati PD. Listed as a mounted police officer, Patrolman Hortez's size is put to good effect to bring peace in the rougher streets of Norwood District, where altercations with and between werewolves were common.
Series: Alter Idem [94]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1618813





	Stories of the Second Self: Big Man on the Beat

"Unit Eighty-three, twenty-four," Dispatch called from Officer Pedro Hortez's personal radio. "Signal Five on a Code Zero at the corner of Reading Lane and Avon Drive."

Pedro's unit number was in fact mounted police, but there was no way a horse would hold him. He drove what looked like a four-wheel scooter, but was a refitted muscle car. Being thirteen foot, four made becoming a cop hard for Pedro. His promising college football tract to the NFL and the law school degree he was seeking were shot by the growth spurt from hell. Being buff even by giant standards, he opted for law enforcement. He was one of only three giant cops in the city, the other two being in the Hamilton County Sheriff's Department.

With the modifications to his vehicle, they hadn't mounted a car radio or laptop into it, forcing Pedro to use his uniform radio. "I'm still in Saint Bernard, Dispatch."

"That's why it's a Code Zero," Dispatch replied, "Lieutenant said to give it to you. Report has an unconscious angel and some werewolves on the scene."

"Roger," Pedro sigh, resigning himself to the circumstance. "Eighty-three, Twenty-four en route. Over."

Truth be told, St. Bernard and Norwood weren't that far apart, though Pedro really hated working even near that city. After twenty minutes he got to the scene and saw exactly as reported; four werewolves standing around among a crowd around an unconscious form that appeared to be human. Since the downed individual wasn't moving it was hard to see the wings, as the feathers bent light around them to create a mirage effect.

On seeing Pedro slowing to a stop, one of the werewolves remarked, "Awh shit. It's Scooter, ah, I mean Officer Hortez."

Pedro wasn't issued a firearm, and instead carried a double-scale Tonfa and a rebuilt Taser Shockwave that packed thirty-two individual taser darts and capacitors, all with a handle that Pedro could use. While pistol-fashioned semi-auto shotguns were in the department, their use as a primary weapon for street patrols was seen as excessive. An irony for hiring a cop for the beat who weighed around eighteen times as much as a human male.

Stepping off his scooter, Pedro walked over to the group of people. The werewolves were hard to miss with their neck hair grown out particularly long. The general color scheme of their clothing made Pedro think of the Ridgewood Street Pack, which he kept in mind when addressing everyone. "Afternoon. Who wants to tell me what's going on here?"

One of the howlers pointed at the angel. "He was unconscious when I found him."

"Just you?" Pedro questioned, and waved at his friends. "Or were they with you at the time of the discovery?"

"Uh, yeah, they were with me," the werewolf corrected.

"Anyone else see what happened to this man?" Pedro called to the rest of the gathering.

"There was a commotion several minutes ago," another angel said, "but by the time I came out to my car over there the guy was already out cold and laying on the ground."

Pedro turned to see the long poorly poured asphalt driveway with grass sprouting between the cracks. The evergreen tree wouldn't have obscured the angel's four-fold visual acuity from there. However, that just meant to Pedro that the angel wasn't going to cover for the werewolves.

"Anybody else?" Pedro asked and turned around.

"Hey," a second werewolf said, "We're the ones who found him."

"And what did you do when you found him?" Pedro asked somewhat aggressively.

"Fuck, whatever," the second werewolf dismissed with his hand and turned around. "Told y'all it'd be like that. Even Scooter thinks we're just thugs."

"Officer Hortez," Pedro reminded, "Thank you," and returned his attention to the first werewolf to volunteer anything. "Do you or anyone else around here know him?"

"Nope," the first howler said, giving Pedro a steady gaze.

Pedro shooed people aside, so that he could kneel down by the angel and look him over. If the angel had to fend off the werewolves his feathers would've prevented claws or teeth from breaking skin on his wings, but they might still be ruffled. However, with inspection, Pedro saw none of that, and no visible bite or claw marks elsewhere on the man.

Granted, Pedro thought, the werewolves could've just beat him down in human form, but he wasn't seeing any bruising or abrasions. Then, a faint whiff hit Pedro's nose, and shifting closer to the sleeping angel's head made the alcohol breath stand out more. In subtle shifts, the angel stirred.

"Sir, do you need any assistance?" Pedro asked the waking angel.

Moaning and grumbling preceded the first semi-coherent word from the winged man. "Hrmm, what?"

"Cincinnati Police," Pedro clarified, "Do you need any help?"

The moment the angel's eyes sighted a giant a couple feet from his face, the voice noticeably soured. "I don't need your damned help, Nephilim."

"Sir, there's no call for that," Pedro said with a calm tone.

"N'yah!" the second werewolf scoffed, "Scooter got hit with a slur too. Don't feel right, does it?"

"Please," Pedro said, becoming too dismissive with his tone and his hand up. "Let me take care of this."

"Scooter's gonna take care of it," the howler taunted, "It's all good now."

"Sir," Pedro tried again with the angel. "Are you aware of where you were sleeping?"

The angel rose up on his hands, his wings still limply draped over the sidewalk and roadside grass strip. "What the...? Shit!"

"I can ask you to get up and go home, on foot," Pedro offered, "Or I can fine you for public intoxication."

"Howlers too," the angel noticed, as he turned over to sit upright. "Why don't you arrest them pack-bangers while you're at it."

"Far as I can tell, they didn't do anything," Pedro replied.

"That's right officer," a third werewolf assured with a more respectful tone. "We were just on our way to the bus stop when we saw him passed out like that."

"'That's right officer,'" the second werewolf mocked.

"Excuse me," Pedro challenged, as he stood up, full height, and stepped over to the mouthy howler. "You can stop adding to the problem or we can take a trip downtown."

"See that shit," Werewolf Two said to the others. "Lettin' druck ass Flyboy off with a warning, but I ain't even done shit and he wants to cuff me."

"'Cause you were bein' an asshole," Werewolf One turned to remark, "Just chill a sec."

"Alright, if you four could just move along that would help," Pedro instructed, himself trying to dial back confrontation.

"Shee-it," Number Two hissed, but turned to leave.

"That goes for everyone else, please," Pedro said, and then turned to the drunk angel. "That goes for you too, sir."

Unsteadily, the angel got to his feet. Pedro watched the angel walk in a different direction toward a main road, while the werewolf quartet went their way, and other citizens each returned to their business.

Shaking his head, Pedro pulled on the radio handset hanging from his shoulder. "Code Four, situation resolved Dispatch."

"Copy that, Eighty-three, Twenty-four," Dispatch answered.

After releasing his radio Pedro muttered to himself, "Another N-word to deal with."


End file.
